Kurayami
by AnimeImagination5151
Summary: Kurayami, a girl who lives a quiet life in the mountains with her parents, suddenly is dragged out of the world she once knew and entered one of sheer terror and tragedy. But what will happen when she steps up and takes matter into her own hands to slay the creatures who destroyed her world...Will she step up and lead the human race to victory.. or die with it?
1. Chapter 1

So, I have watched this anime multiple times and have thought about how they survived Titans the first time around and now you have your answer. WARNING: is **NOT **recommended for people who become attached to any of my fictional characters, this may lead to negativity towards my story, but in reality…**ITS ABOUT SURVIVAL** and overcoming your **FEARS.**

Chapter 1 **Highway to Hell**

I woke up to the fragrance of the flowers in the garden; I opened my window taking it all in. I am Kurayami well…I would give you my last name if I knew it. I live deep within the mountains with my adopted parents. I was left at their doorway with a letter stating my first name but nothing about my last name or why they left me. My mother always told me Kurayami was such a strange name because of my soft nature. See, Kurayami means darkness or girl of darkness. I always hated my name because the people who abandoned me gave it to me, but I learned to accept it either way. Oh yeah, let me finish describing myself. I have long brown hair down to my waist and long bangs that cover my eyes and starting tomorrow I will be sixteen years old.

I had never left the comfort of the mountains in my life, but I had heard amazing stories of my father fighting in the Great War against the other clans. It amazed me he still trained to this day, but he never seemed to enjoy killing anything…even a deer for its meat. Almost like it brought back bad memories for him. The day had started off like any other; I got dressed into my best summer dress. Summer had just arrived and I was determined to kill my first buck today. We lived by a river so it attracted plenty of wild life.

When I walked into the dining room I found my father holding a letter with what looked like was covered in blood. Next to him was a man dressed in a soldier's attire. I didn't understand what was happening so I walked closer to take a look at what the letter said. The soldier hesitated when he saw me glance at the letter, but my father held his hand up to let me through. "Kurayami…you may read the letter, but I need to tell you now that you will be leaving with this man immediately," he said scratching his beard. I didn't understand at all, but I read the letter out loud:

**Keima, it has been far too long my friend. There is so much I would like to tell you, but I must cut to the chase. The villages surrounding the capital haven been attacked. There are creatures scouring the land. They look like us, but only have a taste for human. They are larger than anything you have ever seen and should reach you very soon. It's the least I can do after you saved my life in the war, and now I am no longer in your dept. The message carrier will keep your daughter safe for the time being and will teach her how to fight. There is something else, these creatures we now call Titans have already wiped out 60% of the population. They will never sto-**

"What is this?" I asked turning towards my father. "You need to leave now understand! Your mother is…she has already decided its best not to see you again," he finished waving his hand at the soldier. He dragged me out of the house and placed me on his horse in front of him. He raced down the trail as I held on to him for dear life. "Listen, if you want to stay alive…you need to stay with me understand!" he ordered racing down the trail at insane speeds. I nodded suppressing the urge to vomit. We had exited the mountain in only fifteen minutes and when we reached the bottom he slowed down his horse and checked the surrounding trees.

After a few minutes I thought I heard a loud stomping sound. An earthquake? As I turned to look behind me the man took his hand and covered my eyes as if to say not yet. A second later he had us going at incredibly fast speeds through the forest. The stomping grew l louder then quicker. Like…something was chasing us… I turned my head to look behind us, and what I saw was not human. It was taller than the trees itself. It looked like a human, but was deformed and wore an unnatural grin on its face. It was…awful. I screamed at the top of my lungs starting to breathe harder and harder. I buried my face in the man's shirt, terrified of what would come to me.

"Listen, just a little ways ahead is an army of people that will protect you. No matter what happens don't stop and DO NOT come back…understand?" he said showing a large samurai sword. I nodded, but in reality I didn't know if I could even move. Before I could react he jumped off the back of the horse leaving me with the reigns. "No!" I screamed back at him. The horse continued to run forward and didn't halt, like he knew where we had to go. The soldier ran up to the beast and got its attention all too quickly. The creature fixed its big eyes on him and reached down towards him. He managed to dodge once, but wasn't as lucky the next time. The…Titan grabbed him from the waist and pulled him closer to him. I watched in horror as the man who committed suicide in order for my survival was eaten alive. "No…"I mumbled as I watched him disappear.

Tears fell from my eyes as I watched the Titan lose interest and walk away. My eyes stung as the wind stung my damp eyes. After an hour of racing past trees I could see the end of the thick forest. When I exited with the horse, I suddenly felt faint and fell off. After I was off the horse I rode had collapsed from exhaustion. "Thank you," I said rubbing his mane…he was going to die soon so I left him be. When I turned around hundreds of men were lined up staring at me in horror. I realized I was wearing a white dress stained with blood. In the heat of it all I never noticed. The breeze hit my face gently tugging at my hair.

One man approached me and asked me one word "Dead?" I nodded and he led me to the other troops. They put me in a tent and I never said a word. I could hear them whisper outside my tent though. They called me worthless…and that he died for no reason. I was a waist… Everything I had just witnessed would never leave me as long as I would live. I also realized…that I will never be safe again. We got news the following day that my parent's cabin had been shred to pieces and my family eaten alive. I wondered why I was taking this so calmly, but all I felt was hatred towards the Titans and I would find a way to avenge my family and the nameless soldier who saved my life.

**It has only just begun for Kurayami…she is completely broken with no hope for a bright future. What will happen now that she has nothing to return to? Find out in the next chapter.**


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2** Weakness**

The following day, the officers explained how the Titans had appeared from nowhere and their only objective…targeting and eating humans. If this already wasn't enough, they explained how there were large masses of Titans heading our way. They would be here in two days time and we had no way of defending ourselves. "We can't outrun them, but we might be able to buy ourselves a little time," I blurted out. "I grew up watching my father train for years and I think with a little practice…I could help.

"But, you're just a girl. You couldn't even beat one of us in a brawl," one of the officers finished, laughing nervously. I took this as a challenge and prepared myself. It wasn't like I had never fought before. I didn't just watch my father train; I trained myself to be strong. I grabbed a knife off of a small wooden table and cut my dress shorter so I wasn't held back.

I charged. Instead of coming at him head on, I slid on the dirt right under him. In the confusion I kicked him hard between the legs then in a matter of seconds elbowed his back. He fell to the floor grunting. I picked up his sword case and unsheathed it. I pointed it towards him. "I may be a girl, but that doesn't mean I can't kill you right now. I spat at the ground and wondered what mama would say if she saw me. I felt guilty suddenly, but it disappeared when I reminded myself she was dead because of the Titans.

I would train day and night and never stop if that's what it would take. The officer on the floor stood up and instead of hitting me, he placed his hand on my shoulder. "If you join us, there is a very small chance you will live. I nodded, returned his sword, and bowed. After a few seconds I realized every man in the camp was watching me. "I am leaving tomorrow to scout out the Titans! I could use some help!" I yelled loud enough for everyone to hear. As far as I knew, no one knew how to defeat a Titan, but If I could just get close enough…

No one answered my plea for help. Were they all that scared of death? "I am just a simple girl, who was raised in the mountains! I lived in peace my entire life, and now I am ready to avenge my parents and the soldier who saved my life! We may be weak...But we are humans and we are at the top of the food chain! NOT THEM!" I shouted walking away. I couldn't believe how I was throwing away my life. I should be crying, mourning their deaths…breaking down due to what I had watched.

It was different with me, I craved revenge and I wanted them dead. I wasn't going to let another person die because I was too weak. I am going to rise above these men and finally show the world why I am named Kurayami. For a few minutes I thought about what a risk this was, but at the same time adrenaline coursed through my body. I was ready. The next day I woke up at the crack of dawn and picked the weakest and oldest horse I could find. An old horse is a dead horse anyway. I harnessed it and made my way towards where the Titans were last sighted. I had a sword and wore a black flexible short dress. It left me arms and legs bare, but that gave me room to move quickly if necessary.

When I left the camp, anyone who was awake, looked at me like I was insane. The fear in their eyes was incredible and they thought it was suicide. Only, I didn't plan on dying. My horse was slow, which would come in handy later on. My plan was to leer out a smaller titan with a hay stuffed dummy on the horse. I wanted to get a clear examination of it before it even had the chance to glance towards me. After an hour of riding I heard someone yelling at me from behind. I turned at saw a young man maybe 18 or 19 riding towards me. "This is suicide…go back," he said grabbing onto my horse's reigns. I threw him a threatening look and he continued to hold his ground.

"I need to do this…besides it's not like I am looking to actually fight," I said grabbing my reigns from him. "What's the plan?" he asked. I explained my plan and he agreed to help. "It's a stretch, but I think we can pull it off. Besides, we can escape on this horse just in case," he finished beginning to ride ahead of me. I caught up and thought about how he was risking his life to help me. It didn't matter though, it was his decision and I respected it. We continued on our way until we reached our destination and hour later. We jumped off our horses and examined the area. It was a large grassy field, there were few trees, but there were large boulders randomly laying everywhere. We hid behind the one farthest from the Titans, even though there were only two.

They were about the size of a large house, but were as strong as the taller ones. These were extremely small compared to the one I encountered, but that didn't make this any less terrifying. I took a deep breath and pushed out the horse with the dummy placed on top of it. I grabbed my drawing pad and prepared a sketch as one of them approached. They were human enough, they had large teeth for grinding… always had an idiotic expression... They look exactly like humans, except for a few small minor things. I thought about this for a while and didn't notice the Titan losing interest in the dummy on the horse and looked our way.

For one terrifying moment, I thought I was going to die. Then I felt someone pick me up from behind and place me on the horse. He got on behind me and we raced away as fast as possible. As we sped away the Titan began to follow us. "Listen no matter what, no stopping or sharp turns!" I yelled back. "Sure, but why!" he yelled. I didn't answer, but prepared myself. I climbed over the stranger and balanced myself on the back of the horse. The Titan was very fast and was catching up. I prepared my sword and noticed how its hands were always held out in front of it, like it was trying to grab me. He was now only 10 feet away and I knew I was ready. I took a deep breath and as soon as he came into range I jumped off and sliced where its hands were. At that very second though.. the Titan turned suddenly and instead of cutting off his hand I cut into the back of its neck. It was a deep cut and a few second after, I fell into a large puddle of blood. I turned to see the Titan lying on the ground motionless.

"What…what is this?" I mumbled to myself. "I-I think it's dead," my new comrade answered walking towards me. "Ho-how did you know?" he asked helping me up. "I didn't," I answered truthfully. "All I know is that I sliced the back of its neck and it collapsed," I stated walking towards the horse. "Hurry, we should get out of here before the other one realizes his friend is dead," he said helping me onto the horse. My blade was stained red and I tried to wipe it off on the ride back, but for some reason it wouldn't come off. "Sorry, but you waited too long," the man answered. "What's your name?" I asked grimly. "Yamamoto, and yours?" he asked avoiding eye contact. "Kurayami," I mumbled. We continued to ride in silence, until we reached camp.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3 Strategist

Once we reached camp, everyone around us began to stare. I hadn't realized this but after falling into the puddle of blood, it stained my clothes. Yamamoto helped me off the horse and helped me to my tent. Even though he told me to rest, the second I was inside I grabbed my note pad out and began scribbling down everything that had happened. After hours of analyzing, I finally came up with a strategy. "The back of the neck is their weakest point. If we could just get close enough… Also, they like to grab their prey then eat them. We need a way to move quickly," I mumbled to myself. I had always been a good artist, but this was different. My father always had me creating new sword designs and new inventions to help him catch animals in the forest.

He had told me I had a talent that would be put to use some day…but I had no idea it would be used like this. I had spent a full day designing a device that would increase our speed and accuracy. Getting up to where we could reach the neck was the only problem. I decided to take a break and take a walk around the camp to clear my head. I spotted Yamamoto and hid behind the nearest tent. The last thing I wanted was him trying to pry into my life. If he thought he could tell me what to do…I guess I would just have to knock some sense into him, but he did save my skin back there. For that, I was thankful.

There was just one day left before the Titans would arrive, but everyone seemed deadly calm. I saw a large tree at the end of the camp and did what any sensible girl would do, I climbed it. I had no fear of heights, but I was afraid of falling. "Found you!" I heard a familiar voice yell. Yamamoto started to climb the tree, but kept on falling down. I found his determination amusing but decided to take in the scenery. "Hey I need to talk to you!" he yelled up again. "You can only talk to me if you can climb this tree," I said ignoring him. He walked away, which meant he gave up early. I chuckled at this and knew I had made a valuable comrade. A comrade is someone you can rely on when you're in danger, that is all. A friend is someone you care for and would do anything for. That is the difference between me and everyone else here. No one is my friend here…just valuable sources I can use to claw my way to victory.

I thought about this for a little and realized how cold I really was. Papa and Mama were family…no friends. I am willing to kill every last Titan and or human for them. It wasn't that I didn't want friends…they are just unnecessary keepsakes. Like all keepsakes, you can lose them. I didn't want unnecessary trauma. "Hey! Can we talk now?" I heard Yamamoto yell. I rolled my eyes then jumped back in surprise to see him now sitting beside me. I looked over the edge and realized he used to swords to climb up. Climb…wouldn't a grappling hook be faster? Wait… "I know how we can defeat the Titans! I have to go!" I yelled back to him grabbing his swords. "Hey, those are mine!" he yelled. "I need them!" I answered climbing back down running back to my tent. It's a crazy idea, but it just might work. No, it will.


	4. Chapter 4

Ch. 4

It may have taken all night, but I felt very satisfied with what I had in my hands. Even if it was just a rough sketch, I knew it had the potential to give us the power to defeat the titans. I gave the sketch to the weapons specialist and looked it over carefully. After a few minutes of silence he gave me an odd look. "This is ingenious, but no one here has the skill to wield it. I mean the idea of the cord attaching to the titan's neck, leaving you to kill it quickly? Then attaching it to any surrounding trees or buildings to escape?" "So, you can make it?" I asked hopefully.

"I can, but it will cost you," he answered. At that second I unsheathed my sword and held it up to his neck. "Ok ok ok ok! I will have it done by next week," he muttered rubbing his neck. "I need it done by tomorrow, if that can't be arranged it will cost you your life. I mean that quite literally, I need time to master it before the titans invade camp. "Fine! Two days understand! Jeeze kid, they weren't kidding when they said you were dangerous," he grunted looking at the plans again.

I left afterwards and made my way to the two trees I had encountered the first day I arrived here. They were like twin trees. They were both identical in height and stature. I tied a rope around the trunk of each tree and attempted to balance myself in the middle of the rope. I squatted on the rope and balanced myself. "Wo-woaahhh," I muttered as I lost my balance quickly. I closed my eyes hoping that I would regain my balance, but I began to fall and expecting to feel the hard ground. Instead, I felt a soft yet firm grip around my body.

Yamamoto was looking down at me with a serious expression looking a little annoyed. "You didn't have to catch me!" I yelled at him trying to escape him. "That's not it. What the heck are you doing?" he asked still holding me firmly. "Put me down!" I commanded infuriated. "Fine," he answered. He dropped me suddenly and I hit the ground. "Why yo-" I stopped midsentence as the ground began to shake.

"They shouldn't be here yet," I said my hands shaking as I unsheathed my sword. I ran to the tallest tree, so I could get a visual on the situation. There were two titans only a few hundred feet away. I climbed down the tree and untied the rope and ran towards the camp as fast as my legs could carry me. Although, when I reached my destination, nothing was left. There was blood everywhere, but no bodies.

I searched the camp for signs of the titans, but they had fled. I screamed in frustration and fell on my knees. Instead of mourning I tucked it away and turned it into blind fury. I ran towards the mechanics tent to make sure the plans were still in one piece. The tent was gone, but thankfully the plans were pinned to the table. I released a sigh of relief and tore them it off. I searched the tent and inside a small chest I found a prototype for my device. "There is no way, it had only been two hours," I gasped.

Yamamoto stood by my side as I picked up the device in my arms. "C'mon, we have some work to do," I told him as I made my way near the stables. There were a few horses missing, which meant some people were able to flee. There were two horses left so Yamamoto and I jumped onto the nearest horse and raced away towards the forest.

Day and night we each took turns using it. It made it so you were able to grapple onto the nearest object, pulling you towards it. After twenty seconds though it releases and you free fall. We had to practice our landings and how we would safely land after killing the titan.

Our first plan was to just work on the landing, but it would be an issue with larger titans. We finally figures taking our swords and using the titans to our advantage was the best option. This wasn't just about revenge anymore…this was war and I planned to win.


	5. Chapter 5

Ch. 5

"I…I need some water." Yamamoto gasped as we watched the sun set.

"We are ready." I stated wiping sweat off my face.

"Yama…there is still time for you to back down, I would rather have you live as a coward than die one." I said removing my harness.

"No, I may be terrified, but I won't leave you." he mumbled.

"There is nothing to be afraid of, we get in and get out. Ok, here is the plan. At dawn we take our horses due east, I overheard some drunks talking about how the Titans dominated that specific area. There is a small village near there and we might still have time. Titans have never attacked at night, so maybe it would be safer; but I don't want to take any chances. We go in take them down and take back that land," I finished on a serious note.

Yamamoto nodded and we headed to bed. For the past weeks, we had been sleeping in the trees for past few weeks for certain reasons. We were both sitting up on our own branch and were tying a rope to the tree that wrapped around our waists, in case we fell off.

"Kurayami? What if things don't work out tomorrow," Yama said staring at the sky.

"Improvise," I answered truthfully. The next morning I woke up to the sounds of a loud scream.

"A girl?" I thought out loud.

"Yama!" but when I looked he was gone.

"Oh no," I mumbled. I grabbed my gear and put it on quickly. I grabbed my swords and made my way from tree to tree. I jumped from branch to branch carefully, not looking down. I followed the screaming, until it suddenly stopped.

I stopped dead in my tracks unable to breathe. I was struck with fear that I may have lost this battle, then at the same time the blind hatred I felt when I saw the camp splattered with my comrade's blood rushed through me.

"I won't lose!" I screamed at the top of my lungs hopping from branch to branch where the voice came from. I reached the edge of the forest and what I saw shocked me. There were hundreds of men fearlessly holding back hundreds of Titans.

This still didn't explain that woman's scream. I looked around frantically for the woman, then a small figure lying against a rock caught my eye. I grabbed my swords and cut them into the tree at incredibly force, allowing me to claw down to the ground at ease. I approached the woman, who was missing both of her legs and an arm. She had drowned in her own blood. I looked away and turned towards the now raging war. I ran in their direction, to see my kind torn to shreds. One after the other they were being eaten.

Not again, I sprinted towards the tallest tree at the edge of the forest. The titans were pretty close together. If I could just get a good cut in each of their necks once… It was a long shot but I took it anyway. I climbed the tree and aimed my body towards the closest titan. He was about 70 feet and had the face of a woman. I was disgusted by this then a large grin formed on my face as I injected myself towards the monster and sliced into its neck, as it began to fall I jumped onto the nearest one and did this over and over again. Each jump terrified me, yet I felt so alive.

I began laughing as I took down my last titan. I stood on its back as it fell, causing the ground to shake. I had defeated them all. I used one of my grapples at a time and this increased my chances of landing on a titan safely. There were about 40 men left and all they could do was stare. They looked horrified and when I turned around I knew why. There were titan corpses everywhere. The air smelled of cooked meat for some reason, then I realized it was the bodies of the titans.

I was distracted by what I had done, I forgot about Yamamoto.

"Yama!" I yelled approaching the crowd. Everyone moved out of my way quickly, but Yamamoto was still nowhere to be found.

"Miss…this way," he said leading me to a few bodies.

"They all died of fatal injuries," the old man said with a soft yet edgy tone. I removed the bodies, until a familiar face came into view. Yamamoto's lifeless body lay in between a few other bodies.

"Ho-how did he die?" I stuttered.

"Bravely, he came out of the forest like you, but wasn't as strong. He died trying to protect my men," he answered lighting the corpses on fire.

"H-he was just a comrade. Nothing but a tool, then why do I feel like someone is tugging at my heart?" I asked myself. At that moment I felt like my heart had changed color and shape. I ignored the stench of the bodies and approached the survivors. I stood on top of a few boxes and managed to get everyone's attention.

"You all failed the human race today! Because of your incompetence people died! That is more of this population, gone! You saw what I did out there, now it's your turn to try!" I yelled at the top of my lungs.

"Bu-but how? You're just a girl, how could you accomplish what our General couldn't?" a young man missing an arm stammered.

I am Kurayami, and if you want to live…you will follow me." I said grimly. I walked away and behind me I noticed the men hesitate. Then a few people began to follow me and after that I had an army of men. I planned on training them and teach them how to fight. There had to be a mechanist out of these people that could build more prototypes. Until every human being was safe, I would hold in the pain I felt tugging at my heart.


	6. Chapter 6

Ch. 6

We made camp in the small valley and I had the mechanics start creating more prototypes.

"Kurayami, what exactly should we call this thing?" the main mechanic asked. I took this into consideration for a moment.

"Metal Gear, would be a good name," I mentioned. "Maneuver gear," I answered firmly. He nodded and went back to work.

I walked around the camp observing my new soldiers. How did this even happen? A timid weak little girl has transformed into a fierce warrior? It didn't seem possible, yet it happened.

After seeing people eaten alive, I realized just how cruel this world is. The only natural way to survive is to kill and that's what I was going to do. The mechanics here weren't great, but they were good enough. Apparently, the capitol abandoned these people, used them as bait to lure away the Titans. According to them, they did this on a weekly basis.

"They are just cowards," I thought to myself.

"Ma'am!" someone called out to me from behind.

"My name is Kurayami, not ma'am. We are not soldiers anymore, we are the only chance at humanities survival," I growled.

He bowed and handed me a letter.

"A carrier brought it here Kurayami, they need our help," he said.

"I understand," I answered. The letter read that a village 40 miles away needed our help. They wanted protection.

"Gather three of our best men, as well as the maneuver gear. He nodded and left me immediately.

The next morning we left the small camp on horseback, riding towards our destination. You would think the horses would all be dead, but the titans only took an interest in humans. I was riding with three of the supposedly strongest men in the camp. Riding in front was Hiroshi.

**Age: 19**

**Gender: Male**

**Hobby: Swordsman Ship**

**Eye Color: Brown**

**Hair Color: Brown**

**Height: 6.4**

Riding behind me was Kaito.

**Age: 27**

**Gender: Male**

**Hobby: Unknown**

**Eye Color: Blue**

**Hair Color: Blonde**

**Height: 6.0**

Last, riding beside me was Sho.

**Gender: Male**

**Age: Unknown**

**Hobby: Unknown **

**Eye Color: Hazel**

**Hair Color: Silver**

**Height: Undetermined **

No one knew anything about Sho, except that they picked him up at a destroyed village. He hasn't said a word since. All of these men were terrifyingly strong, and far more skilled with a weapon than myself, but I was ready to fight to the death.

"Listen up, I don't plan on heading back without any of you, so don't do anything stupid," I ordered as the small village came into view.

Amazingly enough, we hadn't seen a single titan the whole trip here. The small village was on the edge of a vast lake surrounded by mountains and a thick forest. Sho and Hiroshi, set a net up between every tree lining the forest. Kaito, you can come with me to greet everyone. We tied our horses to a tree and approached the village. There were 40 houses or so, but no one could be seen. We knocked on the nearest houses door and in a few short minutes the door began to open. A little girl stood at the doorway, she had dirt smudges all over her face and arms, but besides that she was fine. Then I noticed she was limping on one foot.

"Are you here to make the monsters go away?" she asked with a bright expression. I kneeled on one knee and nodded forcing a smile. "Momma! They are here!" the little girl yelled.

"Oh, really?" someone asked from inside the house. A middle aged woman came to the door with a welcoming expression and kind eyes.

"Did they?" I asked gesturing towards the little girl. In a way, at her old village she was picked up by a titan by the leg and a man had to cut off, so she could escape.

It wasn't fair what some of these people had to endure.

"We are here to protect you from any outside threats," I said reassuringly. The woman sighed in relief and asked if we would like to come in.

"I am sorry, but we need to prepare ourselves for the worst. Oh, one question though. Where is everyone?" I asked.

"They are all too afraid to leave their homes," she answered. I bit my lower lip and we said our good byes.

"Kaito, you can talk to me," I mumbled as we went to see how the others were doing with the net.

"I know, but after hearing what happened to that little girl. I know millions have died, but still." he said hiding his eyes under his bangs.

"I know, but that is why we are here. To protect those who can't protect themselves." I finished.

The net wrapped around each individual tree and we had brought enough to cover 2 miles of land. The idea was to stop any titans from entering the valley, before we were ready to fight. That night we made a large fire outside by the river and every couple hours, a few people would come over and greet us.

They asked why we didn't sleep inside, but the answer was simple. We planned on protecting this village, even if it meant putting our lives on the line. We had to stay alert at all times, no matter what. Staying alert all night was difficult though, I continued to drift off which made it harder.

"Sleep, we can handle the rest of the night watch," Hiroshi said letting out a yawn. At first I hesitated, then came to my senses and drifted off into a deep sleep.

I woke up to Kaito shaking my shoulders.

"The net has something!" he yelled. Sho, Kaito, and Hiroshi were already geared up, but I was still wearing normal clothes.

"Go assess the situation!" I ordered.

"Alright you heard her!" Kaito yelled. They sprinted towards the net and after two minutes I was ready. I sprinted towards the net as quickly as my feet could carry me.

When I reached the edge of the forest a large titan stood trying to break the net. This net was made out of the strongest material in the world.

"We need to secure the perimeter! Kaito and Hiroshi! You two get its attention! Sho you're with me! As Kaito and Hiroshi did their best to grab its attention. Sho and I used our maneuver gear to reach the tree tops. Once we were up, the gear fell off and we were defenseless. Luckily we had more of the material, so we could insert it back into the gear, but for now it was up to us.

We jumped from tree to tree, until we reached the one closest to the titan. It was a head taller than our tree, but if we time it correctly we could take it out easily. We both jumped at the same time slicing into its neck, leaving a deep cut. We used our swords and cut through the side of the titan and hit the ground. The titan went down with a loud THUMP! That shook the ground.

Sho and I didn't notice though that every person from the village was on the other side of the net staring at us.

"Yo-you did it!" someone rejoiced. Sho as usually didn't have any comments, but Kaito did all of the talking.

"Today was one victory for us, there will be more," I told Sho. He nodded and we left the forest to greet the townspeople.


	7. Chapter 7

**Ch.7**

The town's people individually thanked us for saving the small village. I wore my best smile and tried my best to convince them they were completely safe, but for the time being everyone was at risk. Sho was still attempting to fix the maneuver gear that had been damaged in yesterday's battle.

"Everyone calm down! The titans shouldn't attack for the next few days and if they do we will be ready!" Kaito reassured the large crowd.

"What if we aren't ready!" one woman yelled.

"My children are starving because of those beasts!" a man shouted.

I approached Kaito and turned towards the crowd.

"Shut up and go back to your houses or you can grow up! Without us, you would be titan food! We aren't willing to risk are lives for people who aren't willing to give us the respect we deserve!" I yelled, loud enough for everyone to hear. Once I finished, everyone returned to their homes without a word. "Kaito...Hiroshi...go prepare the horses. We are leaving this place," I said with a grim expression. I walked to the tent where Sho was working on the gear.

"Sho, collect any children over 10 and under 18. We won't last here, there is too much space between the forest and the village. Also, only take those that are broken." He nodded and trailed off.

Even if we couldn't save them all, the least we could do was take those that could learn how to fight. Those that had nothing to live for would learn that living is the greatest gift of all.

I was stripped of my freedom in one day and learned the harsh truth about life.

Sho returned with three teenagers. "Only three?" I thought to myself.

Two boys and one girl. They all had dreamy expressions, like they had been to hell and back. "These three were staying with an old woman. They witnessed the titan's wrath first hand. The girl's parents were swallowed hole, the boy cared for his two younger sisters, but lost them to a juvenile titan. Lastly, this one...well let's just say he has had the worst of it." Kaito said with grim expression.

"I saw Sho and decided it was best to accompany him," Kaito admitted.

"Hiroshi and Kaito will apprentice those two, I will take the girl." I said grabbing her by the arm.

"Is everyone going to die?" the little girl asked suddenly.

I nodded and placed her on the horse.

"If you stay with us and learn how to fight, you will have a chance at survival. The harsh reality is that everyone here will be eaten by titans, but we will live to tell the story no one would ever believe.

"Becoming a legend.." she said with wide eyes looking towards the forest.

I turned to where she was looking and saw a few titans begin to approach the net.

I turned towards Sho, Kaito, and Hiroshi. The boys had a dreamy expression as well, like they didn't even mind their village being torn to pieces.

"I want to fight," the young girl admitted.

"We will, but now we have to find safety," I said hitting my horse in sides with my legs. We all sped off and could hear the muffled screams of those we abandoned. This was a loss for humans, but a victory for us. We had three strong children, only a little younger than myself.

There was fire burning inside their hearts and even though they looked broken, they were stronger than ever.

We rode for hours, passing what use to be villages. The stench of the dead made by nose curl and eyes sting.

"Why is it you kill titans?" the girl asked.

"Revenge," I answered.

"Revenge? That can't be true," she said.

"It is I assure you, you're just a girl. You wouldn't understand," I said.

"That seems a bit selfish, don't you think?" the young girl sighed.

Her words surprised me, but I said nothing more concerning the matter. After a few hours of riding, we passed a small cavern. The entrance was too small for a titan to slip its hand into, so we decided to spend the next few nights here.

I watched Kaito, Hiroshi, and Sho in silence as they set up the futons. I didn't know any of them really, so it was difficult to interact normally, but at the same time I wanted to refrain from getting to know any of them on a personal level. It would just make everything more difficult if and when they died.

I noticed that the girl I would be training was sitting in the corner, while the other two were sitting together. I sat down in front of her, wearing an awkward smile.

"I know you're faking it, so you might as well stop," she said wiping her nose.

"I think we're are going to get along," I said.

"I don't," she answered with a harsh tone.

"Anyway, what's your name?" I asked.

"I don't have one," she answered.

"Well I guess we will just have to give you one," I muttered.

That was the last time I attempted to make conversation with her and laid down on my futon. That girl had grit and I would use that to my advantage. Although, for some strange reason I wanted to befriend her. I didn't know if it was because we had things in common or for some other random reason, but I wanted to earn her trust.

I became frustrated at the thought of me trying to earn someone's trust, when I could never trust anyone besides myself. I eventually fell asleep, my last thoughts dwelling on the thought of actually trusting someone.

I woke up at the crack of dawn and began to wake everyone up.

"Time to train!" I yelled.

Everyone jumped out of there futons and were ready in a matter of seconds. I sent Sho and Hiroshi to check for any potential threats and sent Kaito to take care of the children. I joined him shortly after I made the cavern livable. We would spend the next few weeks here teaching these kids how to fight.

Time to get everything figured out...

"We need to name them and get their basic features memorized," I ordered.

"I can name the boys, but I will leave naming the girl to you," Kaito answered.

He sat down the boys and inspected them. The boy on the left had shaggy black, his bangs covering his eyes. He was about 5' with handsome enough features. The one on the right, he was completely different. His hair was also black, but was slick and cut short. He was very short, perhaps 5'5 and seemed to have the life sucked out of him.

"Each of you, tell me three important facts about yourself," I ordered.

The boy on the left spoke first.

"I grew up with my family, until they were devoured by titans. The only important fact is that I would like to learn how to kill not fight. My only goal is yours," he answered with a plain expression.

Next the boy on the right.

"I don't have many talents, but I can create. I noticed your device, I can help fix it. My father was a blacksmith, so I picked up a few things. The designs could be better..." he muttered.

I turned my head towards the girl from before.

"There is nothing you need to know about me, that will improve my fighting skills, neither do I want to share any information about myself," she answered.

A good team...

I found out later that the girl was 15, the two boys both 14. We had strong players, now it was time to teach them how to play.


End file.
